Work by graphic design students at The Northern School of Art is being featured on the front cover of the current issue of one of the world’s leading print magazines for the creative industries.

Earlier this year, before the coronavirus crisis hit, the students worked alongside renowned graphic artist Jimmy Turrell to help create three alternative covers, pictured at top, for the February/March 2020 issue of Creative Review.

Read across the worlds of advertising, design and visual culture, the magazine aims to share insight and inspiration from across the creative industries.

The project to assist in the creation of the covers formed part of a work placement for some first and second-year students on the School’s BA (Hons) Graphic Design degree at Jimmy Turrell’s studio.

Having met Jimmy Turrell last May, when they worked on a high-profile project to make a mural for the Radio 1’s Big Weekend in Middlesbrough, pictured below, Selina Lapthorne, Melissa Palmer, Jemma Solley and Haydn White approached him for some work experience.

Jimmy, who has created large-scale collages across the world and has worked with leading brands including adidas and Apple, agreed and the students spent two weeks working as part of the team at his Tyneside studio.

Selina Lapthorne, 21, from Tamworth in Staffordshire said: “Working with Jimmy on this project was a great experience, not only to see what working in industry is actually like, but also being a part of creating the cover for Creative Review, which is distributed worldwide.

“This is such a big deal being a student and will definitely help me in the future with my own work.”

Melissa Palmer, 20, from Whitehaven in Cumbria, pictured below working on one of the artworks, added: “We were able to see the project through from start to finish and used a lot of experimental techniques.

“Seeing our work distributed worldwide on the cover of Creative Review has given me a lot more confidence in my own abilities as a graphic designer.”

The latest issue of Creative Review focuses on how truth and lies are influencing our lives – as well as the creative work that those working in the sector make.

Covering the impact of expressions such as ‘fake news’, ‘misinformation’ and ‘deep fakes’, the edition considers how they symbolise some of the challenges being faced in the 2020s.

The three covers feature hand-created images designed so that the cover looks as if it could be peeled back to reveal hidden meanings underneath.

The process involved screenprinting onto old wallpaper, MDF, parts of an actual door and even a glass.

Jimmy Turrell, pictured below, said: ““Working with the students from The Northern School of Art on the covers was a really great experience. They brought a lot of energy and vibrancy to the project, which really seemed to connect with my general aesthetic, and I hope it’s opened their minds to the possibilities of analogue work”

The Northern School of Art is the only provider of specialist creative courses in the North East with a rating of Gold in the Teaching Excellence and Student Outcomes Framework which means its students receive some of the highest quality teaching in the UK.

Details of the School’s graphic design, digital design and interactive design degrees and its wide range of other creative courses are available at www.northernart.ac.uk